Page 25 of Veiled in Stars and Silver
“That part was obvious,” Hook said. “Do you have any idea where her brothers are, Lil?”
Tiger Lily cut me a nasty glare before facing him. “Mermaids handed them off to us and then we were ordered to take them to Devil’s Cave and leave them. From there, the Lost Boys picked them up and took them to who knows where.”
He swore again. “You don’t know why Pan wants them, do you?”
I watched the exchange in disbelief. The moment that stone touched her, it was like Tiger Lily was a completely different person.
“No. Everyone has this constant urge to do whatever it takes to keep them away from her.” Tiger Lily’s gaze shifted to me. “If Pan can get what he wants and keep your brothers indefinitely, he will.”
“Wait,” I said. “Everything he said is true? You’re really under Pan’s… mind powers?”
Hook held out his hand, and Tiger Lily took it. “Wendy, may I introduce you to Lillian Bearclaw?”
Tiger Lily gave a short curtsy before slugging Hook good-naturedly in the shoulder. “You’re late on that shipment of spices I ordered. Saving the world or not, I expect to be reimbursed if it's not here before Pan is destroyed.”
I blinked. “Are you two friends?”
Hook smirked. “What do you say, Lil? After all this time? Friends?”
“You free us from Pan and I’ll be your best friend forever and always.”
My mouth hung open. I must look ridiculous, and yet I had more important things to worry about at the moment. “But…”I gazed at the other woman pleadingly. “Peter saved you when Hook kidnapped you. He—”
Lillian snorted. “First off, pirates are much fairer trading partners than the Lost Boys. Second, Pan can’t fight to save his life. You think he could have saved me from James if he hadn’t used his mind powers? Not to mention him taking James’s hand.”
I looked at Lillian and then Hook, who was no longer smiling. “What about it?” I asked.
“Cutting off someone’s hand isn’t as easy as you’d think.” Lillian raised her own as if in demonstration. “Not to mention Pan is a child half James’s size who thinks sword fighting is waving a sharp object around his head.”
“His form is terrible,” Hook muttered.
Nausea and horror twisted in my gut at the same time. Now that I knew how to handle a weapon, I realized they were right. I had been thinking about how terribly the boy wielded his weapon earlier that day. “You’re saying Peter forced Hook to stand there while he cut off his hand?”
“And threw it to that she-devil of a Crocodile,” Hook growled.
Could it be true? Or was this some elaborate ruse on Hook’s part? With Tiger Lily on board, that seemed less likely.
“And after Pan gets what he wants from me?” I asked.
Lillian shrugged. “He’ll turn you into one of us. Maybe have you work at Madame Pearl’s.” She said it matter-of-factly. As if she’d seen it happen a hundred times over.
Peter Pan, the monster of Neverland. James Hook, its savior. The idea was foreign. It was laughable. I touched my chest where Peter’s kiss hung beneath my shirt.
Lillian frowned at her half-stone then cast an untrusting glance at me. “You’re playing a dangerous game, James.”
“I am.” He ran his hand through his jet-black hair, giving it a ridiculously appealing, tousled appearance. “But she is the key to ending this.”
Her gaze turned appraising. “In that case, Pan will figure out at any moment what we are doing. Here.” She offered me the stone clutched in her palm.
Biting my lip, I reached out to take it, but Lillian snatched it up. “As soon as you take this, you can’t take it off again or your mind will be his.”
“Wait,” Hook said. “Let me fix it so it can hang from that cord around her neck.”
Tiger Lily, or Lillian, held it while Hook worked his hook into the stone, carving out a hole. I watched, wanting to scream. Wanting to protest that something must be off. My Neverland was tainted by a history that I’d never known. My Neverland had never really been mine. And Peter, the hero I’d always admired—not to mention our little childhood crush—it was all a lie.
If Hook and Lillian were telling the truth.
I hesitated. “Why him?” I asked Lillian. “Why make Hook Neverland’s savior?”
